CHINESE  BASKETS 


by 
Berthold  Laufer 

Curator  of  Anthropology 


38  Plates 


V*! 


Anthropology  Design  Series  No.  3 


FIELD  MUSEUM  OF  NATURAL  HISTORY 

Chicago 
1925 


CHINESE  BASKETS 


by 

Berthold   Laufkr 

Curator  of  Anthropology 


38  Plates 


ff'S      NATURAL     Kf^ 
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Anthropology  Design  Series  No. 


FIELD  MUSEUM  OF  NATURAL  HISTORY 

Chicago 

1925 


CHINESE  BASKETS 

PREFACE 

The  baskets  of  the  North  American  Indians  have  attracted  a  great  deal  of 
attention,  resulting  in  an  enormous  literature  both  technical  and  popular  in 
character,  which  is  concerned  with  their  technique  and  designs.  The  basketry 
of  the  natives  of  the  Philippines,  Hawaii,  and  New  Zealand  has  elicited  a  few 
monographs,  but,  as  far  as  I  know,  the  baskets  of  China  have  never  been  studied 
by  any  one.  The  mere  fact  of  their  existence  is  not  even  mentioned  in  the  current 
books  on  China  and  the  Chinese.  Yet,  since  earliest  times,  baskets  have  occupied 
a  prominent  position  in  Chinese  civilization,  although  naturally,  owing  to  climatic 
and  soil  conditions,  no  ancient  baskets  have  survived.  In  the  ancient  Book  of 
Songs  ( Shi  king )  and  in  the  ancient  Rituals  occur  many  terms  for  various  kinds 
of  baskets,  but  contemporaneous  descriptions  of  these  are  lacking,  and  we  hardly 
receive  more  than  a  very  general  idea  of  their  appearance.  We  read  of  round 
baskets  of  bamboo,  of  square  shallow  baskets  of  bamboo  or  straw,  or  of  square 
baskets  in  which  eatables  or  clothes  were  preserved.  The  young  bride  offered  to 
her  father-in-law  fruit  in  a  basket.  It  was  a  famous  maxim  in  the  good  old  times 
that  men  and  women  should  not  touch  each  others'  hands  and  that  when  a  man 
wanted  to  make  a  gift  to  a  woman,  she  should  receive  the  object  in  a  basket. 
We  also  hear  of  baskets  used  for  specific  industrial  purposes;  thus,  for  instance, 
as  fish-traps  set  at  the  openings  of  dams,  and,  above  all,  in  the  silk  industry.which 
was  the  main  occupation  of  women.  The  tender  leaves  of  the  mulberry  on  which 
the  silkworm  feeds  were  gathered  in  deep  baskets,  and  a  square  type  of  basket 
served  for  depositing  the  cocoons.  Even  at  present  basket  trays  play  an  important 
part  in  the  rearing  of  silkworms  (Plate  I).  Baskets  also  were  utilized  in  funeral 
ceremonies  and  filled  with  cereals  as  food  for  the  departed  soul,  being  placed  near 
the  coffin.  This  custom  is  still  perpetuated  by  the  farmers  living  in  the  environ- 
ment of  Peking,  who  bury  with  their  dead  an  oval  basket  plaited  of  willow-twigs. 
In  ordinary  life  this  vessel  serves  the  purpose  of  a  grain-measure,  holding  one 
pint;  when  used  as  a  mortuary  vessel,  the  wooden  hoop  around  the  rim  is  re- 
moved, and  food  is  stored  up  in  the  basket  ( for  illustration  see  Laufer,  Chinese 
Potter\^  of  the  Han  Dynasty,  Plate  75,  No.  5). 

There  is  a  certain  degree  of  interrelation  of  basketry,  pottery  and  metal 
vessels.  In  the  case  just  cited  the  mortuary  basket  is  a  substitute  for  a  pottery 
urn  which  is  usually  deposited  in  the  grave  in  the  provinces  of  Chi-li,  Shan-tung, 
and  Kiang-su.  There  are  two  ancient  types  of  rectangular  baskets  known  asfu 
and  kivei  and  used  for  boiled  grain  at  sacrifices  and  ceremonial  feasts;  they  are 
preserved  only  in  pottery  and  bronze  (for  illustrations,  see  op.  cit.,  Plate  25,  and 
Art  in  America,  October,  1925,  Fig.  4),  which  give  us  at  least  a  vague  idea  of 
what  they  may  have  looked  like  in  basketry.  On  the  other  hand,  there  are  ancient 
sacrificial  vessels  of  tazza  shape  in  pottery  and  bronze,  which  at  present  have 
survived  in  basket  form  in  the  worship  of  Confucius  and  his  disciples  (Plate  38) . 


There  is  a  fundamental  difference  between  the  baskets  of  northern  China 
and  those  of  the  central  and  southern  portions  of  the  country.  In  the  north  they 
are  part  and  parcel  of  the  rural  population,  plain,  practical,  strong,  durable, 
chiefly  for  agricultural  purposes,  as  collecting  and  carrying  earth  and  manure, 
winnowing,  storing  grain,  or  used  as  means  of  transportation  (hamper  and 
dossers) .  These  being  exclusively  of  ethnological  interest  have  not  been  included 
in  this  publication,  which  is  devoted  to  the  artistic  baskets  whose  home  is  in  the 
Yangtse  Valley  and  the  country  stretching  southward.  Here  we  meet  in  full 
development  the  flower  basket  with  a  great  variety  of  shapes  and  graceful  handles, 
the  picnic  basket  with  padlock,  the  neat  travelling  basket  in  which  women 
carry  their  articles  of  toilet,  and  the  "examination  basket"  in  which  candidates 
visiting  the  provincial  capital  for  the  civil  service  examinations  enclosed  their 
books  and  writing-materials,  also  the  cozy  for  tea-pots,  more  practical  and  efficient 
than  our  thermos-bottles,  and  the  curious  pillow  of  basketry  weave.  The  basket 
boxes  with  raised  and  gilded  relief  ornaments  are  also  characteristic  of  the  south. 

In  accordance  with  the  general  interest  in  Chinese  art  and  art  industries  in 
this  country,  there  is  now  also  a  considerable  interest  in  and  demand  for  Chinese 
baskets.  They  make  a  ready  appeal  to  our  esthetic  sense  on  account  of  their 
elegance  of  shape,  variety  of  design,  and  other  artistic  features,  not  to  speak  of 
usefulness  of  purpose.  Chinese  genius  has  developed  baskets  along  lines  un- 
known in  other  countries;  it  was  not  merely  satisfied  with  creating  pleasing 
forms  and  attractive  decorations,  but  also  endeavored  to  combine  basketry  with 
other  materials  like  wood,  metal,  and  lacquer,  and  to  enliven  and  embellish  its 
appearance  through  the  application  of  processes  originally  foreign  to  the  indus- 
try. The  covers  of  many  baskets  display  a  finely  polished,  black  lacquer  surface 
on  which  landscapes  or  genre  pictures  are  painted  in  gold  or  red.  Others  are 
decorated  with  metal  fittings  (of  brass  or  white  metal)  finely  chased  or  treated 
in  open  work.  Delicate  basketry  weaving  is  applied  to  the  exterior  of  wooden 
boxes  and  chests,  even  to  silver  bowls  and  cups,  as  may  be  seen  in  the  exhibits 
(at  present  at  the  south  end  of  the  west  gallery).  In  this  association  with  other 
modes  of  technique  Chinese  basketry  has  taken  a  unique  development  which 
should  be  seriously  studied  and  considered  by  our  own  industrial  art-workers. 

In  accordance  with  the  object  of  this  design  series,  this  publication  does  not 
aim  at  a  scientific  study  of  the  subject,  but  is  primarily  intended  for  the  designer, 
craftsman,  and  art  student.  Nevertheless  it  is  hoped  that  the  technical  student 
of  basketry  also  will  find  it  useful  and  instructive,  as  full  information  as  to  weave 
and  design  is  given  in  the  plates  for  each  object.  The  locality  where  each  object 
was  made  is  noted,  and  as  the  collection  is  fairly  comprehensive,  it  gives  an  ade- 
quate view  of  what  types  of  baskets  are  made  in  middle  and  southern  China. 

The  technique  of  some  Chinese  baskets  is  described  and  illustrated  in  an  article  by  L.  Parker,  "Some  Com- 
mon Baskets  of  the  Philippines"  in  The  Philippine  Craftsman  (Vol.  Ill,  No.  1,  Manila,  1914),  and  in  another 
study  by  E.  M.  Ayres  and  L.  Duka,  "Basketry  Weaves  in  Use  in  the  Philippines,"  in  the  same  journal  (Vol.  V, 
No.  5,  1916),  as  many  types  of  baskets  used  in  the  Philippines  are  either  made  by  Chinese  or  by  the  native  tribes 
after  Chinese  models.  Illustrations  of  Japanese  baskets  may  be  consulted  in  the  monograph  of  J.  Conder,  "Theory 
of  Japanese  Flower  Arrangements"  (Transactions  of  the  Asiatic  Society  of  Japan,  Tokyo,  Vol.  XVII,  1889,  Plates 
11,  44,  60,  61,  64)  and  in  an  article  by  C.  Holme,  "The  Uses  of  Bamboo  in  Japan"  (Transactions  of  the  Japan 
Society  of  London,  Vol.  I,  1893;  see  also  Vol.  V,  1902,  p.  50  and  Plate  V). 


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ANTHROPOLOGY,    DESIGN   SERIES  NO.    3,    PLATE  X. 


In  shape  of  a  boat,  with  double  handle. 


OLD  FLOWER  BASKET. 

Made  of  dark  bamboo  in  open,  twined,  and  coiled  weaves. 

WEN-CHOU,  CHE-KIANG. 
Height  S^S  inches.     Length  14  inches.     Width  loK  inches. 
Cat.  No.  126183. 


Traces  of  gold  paint  on  base  and  rim. 


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FIELD  MUSEUM   OF  NATURAL  HISTORY. 


ANTHROPOLOGY.   DESIGN  SERIES   NO.    3,    PLATE  XV. 


WICKERWARE  BASKET. 


Of  coil  weave,  fitted  with  a  porcelain  tea-pot.    The  spout  projects  through  a  perforation  in  the  lock,  making  it  possible  to  pour  without 
removing  the  pot  from  the  cozy.     The  hinges  are  in  shape  of  double  coins,  and  the  hook  for  fastening  is  in  form  of  a  fish. 


CANTON,    KWANG-TUNG. 

Height  7K  inches.     Diameter  g  inche 

Cat.  No.  126174. 


PILLOW  OF  RATTAN  STRIPS. 
Hollow.     The  ends  are  ornamented  with  strips  of  black  in  twilled  weave  of  square  pattern. 

CANTON,   KWANG-TUNG. 
Height  s  inches.     Length  isK  inches.     Width  s'V  inches. 
Cat.  No.  126176. 


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FIELD  MUSEUM  OF  NATURAL  HISTORY. 


ANTHROPOLOGY,    DESIGN  SERIES  NO.    3,    PLATE  XIX. 


CIRCULAR  CARRYING  BASKET. 

Made  in  two  compartments,  with  black-lacquered  handle,  of  fine  bamboo  split,  in  checker  and  twined  weaves.    The  cover  is  decorated 
with  a  painting  in  gold  outlines,  representing  two  women,  one  mending  a  garment,  the  other  painting  silk  fans. 

CH'ENG  HIEN,   SHAO-HING  FU,   CHE-KIANG. 

Height  gl-i  inches.     Diameter  8J^  inches. 

Cat.  No.  1 26166. 


CIRCULAR  BASKETS. 
Made  of  brown  bam.boo,  in  checker  weave  of  two  layers.     No  handles. 

KI-AN  FU,   KIANG-SI. 
Height  3M  and  3  inches,  respectively.     Diameter  7  and  4K  inche-s,  respectively. 
Cat.  Nos.  136193,  136194. 


OLD  OVAL  BOX. 

For  keeping  cakes.  Covered  with  basketry 
in  checker  weave  and  trimmed  with  brass  mounts 
and  double  handle.  Hinged  lid  with  brass  lock. 
Cover,  base,  and  edges  lacquered  black. 

Height  3K  inches.     Length  10  inches* 
Cat.  No.  12621.?. 


FIELD   MUSEUM   OF  NATURAL  HISTORY. 


ANTHROPOLOGY,    DESIGN   SERIES  NO.    3,    PLATE  XX. 


CIRCULAR  LACQUER  BOX. 

The  brown  lacquer  is  ornamented  with  designs  in  gold  and  red.  The 
centre  of  the  cover  is  occupied  by  an  ornamental  form  of  the  character  shou 
("longevity"),  surrounded  by  five  bats  {wufu)  symbolizing  five  kinds  of  bless- 
ing (wufu):  old  age,  wealth,  health,  love  of  virtue,  and  natural  death.  On  the 
sides  are  the  eight  Buddhistic  emblems  of  luck,  alternating  with  the  character 
"double  joy"  {shwang  hi). 

FUCHOW,    FU-KIEN. 
Height  3M>  inches.     Diameter  8Vj  inches. 


CIRCULAR  BASKET  WITH  COVER. 

Made  in  coiled,  twined,  and  interlaced  weaves  of 
extreme  fineness.  Partially  painted  gold  and  red. 
The  handle  is  surmounted  by  a  ring. 

K'lEN-LUNG  PERIOD  (1736-95). 

Height  4%  inches.    Diameter  S'/i  inches. 

Cat.  No.  126203. 


OCTAGONAL  BASKET. 

Base,  trimmings,  and  cover  of  wood.  Basketry  in  double  layers;  on  the  exterior,  split  bamboo  in  checker  and  twined  weaves;  in  the 
interior,  twilled  weaving  in  yellow  and  brown.  The  painting  on  the  black-lacquered  cover  represents  a  mother  holding  a  child ;  two  boys  are 
engaged  in  wrestling. 

CH'ENG  HIEN,   SHAO-HING   FU,   CHE-KIANG. 

Height  6Vs  inches.     Diameter  lo'/l>  inches. 

Cat.  No.  12616SB. 


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FIELD   MUSEUM  OF  NATURAL  HISTORY. 


ANTHROPOLOGY,    DESIGN   SERIES  NO.    3,    PLATE  XXII. 


CIRCULAR  CARRYING  BASKET. 

Made  of  fine  bamboo  split  in  checker  and  twined  weaves.    Interior  lined  with  twilled  weaving.    Base,  trimmings,  and  handle  of  wood. 
The  cover  (on  the  left)  is  lacquered  black  and  painted  with  a  landscape  in  gold.     Along  the  base  a  raised  key-pattern  gilded. 

CH'ENG  MIEN,    SHAO-HING  FU,   CHE-KIANG. 

Height  5K  inches.     Diameter  J2}i  inches. 

Cat.;No.  126164. 


OCTAGONAL  BASKET- 

Of  same  technique.    The  painting  on  the  black-lacquered  cover  represents  two  mainah  birds  perching  on  a  branch.    On  the  black-lacquered 
base  raised  designs  in  gold  of  flowers  and  bats  alternating. 

CH'ENG  MIEN,   SHAO-HING  FU,   CHE-KIANG. 

Height  6  inches.     Diameter  9-K  inches. 

Cat.  No.  126162. 


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